Only a FS Jimmie Ward-Houston Texans

I thought this was a solid pick. We will likely go WR DB in round two. Or DB WR. Then I bet we address D-line depth in the third round. We may also grab an ILB in there as well. Someone who has high upside but will contribute to Special teams. Has anyone seen how long Ward's arms are?

Originally posted by Young2Rice:

I'm reading that he is a saftey that will play nickle to be groomed as a safety?

Has that happened before? I hope they just make him a CB. It doesn't make sense to me otherwise

Baalke and company do things that do not seem to make sense on with some regularity.

Opted to draft Bruce Miller to play full back.

Opted to play Culliver at cornerback and not at safety.

Baalke said that initially Ward will focus on learning to play nickel back and safety.

Originally posted by VA49er:
I thought this was a solid pick. We will likely go WR DB in round two. Or DB WR. Then I bet we address D-line depth in the third round. We may also grab an ILB in there as well. Someone who has high upside but will contribute to Special teams. Has anyone seen how long Ward's arms are?

About 31", so once again, the myth that Baalke drafts only long-armed players can continue to die.

Holy s**t, you know who this kid remind me of? Charles Woodson, dirty motherf**ker.

I bet if Ward was in the slot on that 4th and 7 against Seattle, the throw would not have been completed.


Damn... still pisses me off. *sigh*

Originally posted by Phoenix49ers:

It's attributed to Kevin Lynch. Whether or not you think he's a credible reporter is on you.

Kevin is a reporter. A statement attributed solely to him is of questionable veracity. I do not where he got that information.

Credible reporters can be wrong, mistaken, or unclear.

But, that is my opinion, and I think I was pretty clear. I said that that statement cannot be taken at face value.

But, of course you are free to believe whatever you want.

I'm reminded of Wilson throwing deep on us in the playoffs. I'm reminded of us getting burned the last 3 years.

This dude is shameless, he'll charge his f**king shoulder into somebody's knee cap to get the tackle/sack.

This guy will be potent against mobile QBs, imagine this dude playing 'spy' on 3rd down snaps against Russell Wilson. Has the speed to catch up despite biting on a QB draw. I see big things for this kid.

Love the pick, value, versatility and the fact we didn't trade up. I must admit I somewhat jumped off his bandwagon once we signed Bethea, but it definitely makes sense. Most experts had Dix, Pryor and Ward as first rounders with Buchanon as the lone 2nd rounder. Then Brooks, Joyner and late rising Vereen listed as 3rd rounders, although I think most positions had a better projected value. In other words, I think there was a huge drop off in talent at safety after the first few players. I know he is projected to start at ncb and I think he will win the job. But he can also fill in, in a pinch, if one of our starting safeties go down.

Secondly, I always thought the talent gap from Beckham to the 6 or so receivers that should go in the 2nd, isn't that big.

I had WR, OL, CB and S as our biggest draft needs. So I feel we killed two birds with one stone.

As much as I liked today's results, I think tomorrow can be even better. Having 5 picks tomorrow gives me a chubby.

Niners!!!!

Originally posted by buck:
Kevin is a reporter. A statement attributed solely to him is of questionable veracity. I do not where he got that information.


But, that is my opinion, and I think I was pretty clear. I said that that statement cannot be taken at face value.

But, of course you are free to believe whatever you want.

Which is fine, I can take that statement at face value since I find him a competent and reliable source for news about the team. I see no reason for him to lie about the 49ers draft boards, obviously he has better connections with the team than anyone here.


You can believe whatever you wish of course, but as far as I'm concerned, I have no doubt what he said is true.

Originally posted by Phoenix49ers:

Which is fine, I can take that statement at face value since I find him a competent and reliable source for news about the team. I see no reason for him to lie about the 49ers draft boards, obviously he has better connections with the team than anyone here.

Just the same you are free to believe or not believe as you see fit, after all, just like Mulder said, the truth is out there.

As long as you do not pretend that your belief in Lynch means that his statement should be accepted as a fact.

I never said that he lied.

Originally posted by buck:

Originally posted by Young2Rice:

I'm reading that he is a saftey that will play nickle to be groomed as a safety?

Has that happened before? I hope they just make him a CB. It doesn't make sense to me otherwise

Baalke and company do things that do not seem to make sense on with some regularity.

Opted to draft Bruce Miller to play full back.

Opted to play Culliver at cornerback and not at safety.

Baalke said that initially Ward will focus on learning to play nickel back and safety.

Right i understand coverting players like culliver and miller, esp in later rounds.

DBs often convert to safites and sometimes visa versa. But i'm trying to think where a guy was drafted in round - 1 to change positions and also to learn his natural position.

Its just bizarre to me. Why not focus on one position, especially because we are desperate at cb.

http://www.hustlebelt.com/2014/5/7/5688174/2014-nfl-draft-jimmie-ward-dont-believe-the-height Great article on Ward. It answers my suscpicion as well. Dude has long arms.

Baalke loves him some arms. And judging by the guys we draft I tend to agree. "Ward's wingspan of 77 1/8" was the second largest of all the defensive backs at the Senior Bowl. That roughly translates to the wingspan of someone who's 6'4". This reach helps him in coverage. As was evident in his amazing interception in the Toledo game. So even at 5'11" he's widely considered to be the best cover safety in this years draft."

It's amazing how long we have looked at a guys head height as something so important. My dad was a college basketball player and coached us as kids. He never really cared about how tall someone was. How high could they reach was something he preached and and preached. Followed by how high they could jump. Both matter somewhat. My dad was 6-4. I was 6 foot even but my arms allow me to reach higher than him flat footed and I can jump higher. Given equal ability I was always able to handle alot of guys who were inches taller than me on jump balls, rebounds, blocked shots etc.

http://www.hustlebelt.com/2014/4/19/5630966/2014-nfl-draft-jimmie-ward-northern-illinois-s-scouting-profile?utm_source=sbnation&utm_medium=mustreads&utm_campaign=blogs

Dudes at "hustlebelt" really like this guy.

Originally posted by Young2Rice:

Right i understand coverting players like culliver and miller, esp in later rounds.

DBs often convert to safites and sometimes visa versa. But i'm trying to think where a guy was drafted in round - 1 to change positions and also to learn his natural position.

Its just bizarre to me. Why not focus on one position, especially because we are desperate at cb.

Baalke, in an interview talked about the fact that Ward had played nickel back at Northern Illinois and at the Senior Bowl. Baalke was impressed with the ability that he showed when playing the position.